FIESTA R5 QUOTES, 2018 RALLY ARGENTINA, PREVIEW

M-Sport will run four EcoBoost-powered Ford Fiesta R5s at this week’s Rally Argentina – Gus Greensmith, Pedro Heller, Nil Solans and Alberto Heller all competing in the FIA World Rally Championship’s premier support series, WRC 2.

Gus Greensmith said:

“I completed the recce for this event last year, but this will be my first time experiencing the stages at full speed. I think everyone expects the same thing here – and it’s going to feel more like driving on the moon than driving on gravel. I have no doubt that it will feel like the truly special event it is.

“The stages are very rough and the biggest challenge will be to avoid punctures. There’s always a high rate of attrition here, so we will have to drive a clever rally – but hopefully a fast rally also.

“It’s vital for the championship that we finish, but I would be disappointing with anything less than a podium and I want to step up my speed after a disappointing event in Corsica.”

Pedro Heller said:

“It’s nice to be contesting Rally Argentina for the second time. For sure the roads are going to be more familiar this year and we also have a lot of fans from Chile supporting us so we are really looking forward to this one.

“This is an event where you need to know where to attack and where to be a bit more conservative – looking after the car so as to do 100 percent of the kilometres whilst also being competitive.

“Just before the rally in Argentina I have a national championship event in Chile so I will have the kilometres and the feeling with the car. The hope is to be competitive and to complete all of the stages with a good rhythm. If we can achieve a podium finish at the end of the event, it would be really nice.”

Nil Solans said:

“This will be my first time competing in Argentina, but I have to say that it looks like a really enjoyable event. The surface is quite sandy in most of the stages, and the roads quite different to what I’m used to. It’s going to be a difficult event as we need to learn everything about these stages, but I am looking forward to the challenge.

“My goal is to complete all of the kilometres and learn as much as I can. We will try our best to find a good set-up early on. M-Sport has a lot of experience here so with their support I hope we can learn a lot and show good progress throughout the weekend.”